...Flying back home soon....!!

Ramadan Bazaar@el Haiyu el Ashara

The humble Ramadan Bazaar at el Haiyu el Ashara or district 10 Nasr City, Cairo. Definitely, it cannot beat the Taman Melawati's version and other typical Ramadan Bazaar back home.

Family Iftar 2010

This was our last Iftar at Palestine Hotel, Montazah with ELNG in Alexandria, Egypt. Nothing much to share and write. Thank you Egypt, hope we will have the opportunity to visit you again, one day, InsyaAllah. Eid Said & Mubarak to the beautiful people of Egypt.

Souk Manshiya::the heart of Alexandria

Akin to Souk Hamidiy in Damascus, Syria or Kapalicarsi – the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, Turkey or Khan Khalili in Cairo and any other souks in the Middle East, Manshiya is the Alex version of the souks with the hustle and bustle of the local vendors of all sorts of things with thousands of people excising their rights and their bargaining skills.
Located at the downtown of the second largest city in Egypt, Alexandria, Manshiya is one of the touristic spot that managed to lure local and foreigners alike. Out of our curiosity, we went there after Solat Terawih around 10:00 pm to get a close view on what are the ‘happenings’ there during the night of the holy month Ramadan. We entered from the eastern side of the 2 square kilometers open souk. It was really busy and crowded!! Aiman was a little bit shocked and wanted to turn around but I managed to convince him. The crowd was a bit less as we went through the gold and jewelries area. Some space to breath! What amazed me about this place, despite its narrow crowded alleys and roads, the petty crime rate is relatively very low as compared to other areas in many countries in this world.

That was probably my last visit after had been almost four years in this historical place called Alexandria. Till we meet again.

Nostalgic CAIRO:: Intro::our Lifetime adventure

Map 1::the green shaded area marks the Nostalgic historic Cairo and the red dotted line shows the route of our adventure

Walking through the 3 kilometers spinal cord of the nostalgic historical Cairo was really an amazing adventure and experience. This is where the greatest concentration of Islamic features – buildings, tombs, schools, masjids, etc., both in quality and quantity built by prominent in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Egypt must be proud of the inclusion of this historical spot in UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The main intention of the adventure was to have, as much as possible, a close encounters to the features. Sabil-kuttab, for example, is one of its kinds – unique to Cairo, a two storey building with covered water fountain to serve the community on the ground floor and a room for children learning reciting the holy Qur’an at the upper level. Another feature is the wikalas – akin to hostel which has small living units in the upper level and commercial uses at ground floor.

Photo: Bab al Azab of the Salah al Din Citadel. Part of the domes of the Masjid Muhammad Ali can be seen in the background

The historic Cairo comprises of the ‘Old Cairo’ or the origin of Cairo, referring to al Fustat – the first Islamic settlement in Egypt, perhaps is Africa, established by one of the prominent Companion of Prophet Muhammad saw (peace be upon him), ‘Amr ibn al ‘As, sent by the second Caliph of Islam, Umar ra in 632; the Citadel – which dominates the urban fabric of the city and crucial to the structure of historic Cairo; the historic city, which covers the Fatimid city; Bulaq and last but not least, the historic Islamic cemeteries.

Photo: The south side of Masjid Mahmud Pasha. On the right hand side is the dome of Masjid Amir Akhur and on the left, is part of Masjid & Madrasah Sultan Hassan

Our three and a half hours adventure, however, covered only the spine of the historic city from the popular Sultan Hassan Masjid cum madrasah or religious school at the foothill of the Citadel to the al Hakim bi ‘Amrullah Masjid on the north side of the Fatimid city.

Photo: The west side of the Masjid Amir Akhur

We approached our adventure from the south side of the city, where cluster of Masjids – Masjid Sultan Hassan; Masjid ar Rafai’e; Masjid Mahmud Pasha and Masjid Amir Akhur found right at the foothill of the majestic Citadel.

Photo: The magnificient Masjid & Madrasah Sultan Hassan and Masjid ar Rafa'ie (right)

Arrived and parked our car in front of Bab al Azab of the Citadel (facing the south-west side of Masjid Mahmud Pasha) at 09:02 hours, from where I walked to the beautifully landscaped round about to shoot the panoramic scene of this cluster. My NIKKOR wide-angle lens had helped me to capture these magnificently crafted buildings.

ESNCairo2::Shrine of Qansuh Sa'id

Map: The second stop of our Exploring Stop Nostalgic (ESN) Cairo - Shrine of Qansuh Sa'id

Photo below: Qansuh Sa'id's shrine. Sad to mention, the condition is a bit run down.

Our second stop and visit was the shrine of Qansuh Sa'id located along the al Mahger street 120 meters from Bab al Azab. The shrine was built in 1499. When Qansuh eventually becam sultan, he built another impressive tomb. Sherif parked our car at the junction of the al Mahger street in front of Dar el Mahfouzate Masriya. We were actually lost our track. To get back, Sherif consulted few middle age friendly and helpful Egyptians who were having their shisha and chai or tea at the junction makeshift cafe, while I spending my time exploring the run down shrine. The coverage of our adventure was to explore the outer side of the monuments that we've intended to visit. Nothing much to see though, we spent less than 10 minutes at this stop. We continued our adventure through the el Mahger street and as went deep to the city, the scene of the buildings and curios faces coupled with their sincere smile that we met, made we feel amazed. As if we were sent back to the past. Great.

Photo above: Sherif with the friendly Egyptians at the junction cafe. El Mahger street is on the left side photo - narrow, winding and wet un bitumented road.

Photo below: the Dar el Mahfouzate Masriya part of the Salah al Din Citadel's features.

ESNCairo3::Masjid Aytmish el Bagasi and Tarabay as Sharifi's Shrine

The adventure continued from the junction to Bab el Wazeer street until we reached Bab Zuwayla, then went through another busy narrow el Tabanna street and el Darb el Ahmar street. We had an elaborate stop at el Ghuriya before we continued to Bab el Futouh of the Fatimid city on the north through el Muizz el Din Allah street.
The hot summer sun of Cairo failed to de-motivate our zeal as we continued our adventure north along Bab al Wazeer street. In this phase leading to the Blue Masjid are numerous nineteenth houses, which, although now dilapidated and neglected, retain an aura of grandeur and elegance, often with fine mashrabiya (will elaborate later) windows almost intact. 5 minutes later, we reached the 3rd intended stop – the Masjid of Aytmish al Bagasi, which was built in 1383 by Prince Aytmish al Bagasi who was the regent of the Mamluk Sultan Farag Ibn Barquq.

We asked few Egyptians at their early 30s sitting on the plastic tools to confirm whether we were on the right track. Well, they advised us to check the signage on the front outer wal of the run down building. Sheriff peeped through underneath the wooden scaffolding and confirmed. The building, sad to mention was in a very despair condition. Nevertheless, some sign of restoration efforts around the main building had shown some hope that one day, the new generation would be able to enjoy its renaissance.

Amid the slow progress (seems to be) of the restoration work, one could still obeserve the decoration of the façade expounds some of the 13th century characteristics of decoration style.
Around the Mosque appears a group of buildings with its unique features - the mashrabiyas, that date from Mohamed Ali period.

Mashrabiya literally means drinking place, and the term was used because porous earthenware jugs were placed near the latticed windows so that the incoming air would be cooled by the evaporation. During the Mamluk time, mashrabiyas were used as screens, partitions, and windows, providing gentle light, cool air, and privacy.

To the right of the façade is Bab al Turba Street, which led us to the Bab al Tarabay al Sharifi built and established by Prince Tarabay in 1504. He was commander of the army of Mamluks under Sultan al Ghuri. On the right hand side of the gate, is the sabil-kuttab (photo above) that once led to a madrasah. 3 meters after the gate, on the left hand side is the shrine of Tarabay al Sharifi (photo below). The façade of the shrine, a large domed cube.

I spent 5 minutes on the eastern side of the monument and planned to shoot the whole features, but was stopped by a man. “Masalamah”, I responded to him politely and continued back my adventure through Bab al Wazir Street to another cluster of building towards the north of the street. On the way out, there were few old women with their children (I presume) - street vendors selling local produce to survive the harsh life.

ESNCairo4::Palace Alin Aq & Masjid Amir Khayr Bek

About 100 meters to the north of the Masjid Aytmish al Bagasi, was our another stop where cluster of historical buildings – Palace of Alin Aq, Masjid and Shrine of Amir Khayr Bek, Masjid Ibrahim Agha Mustahfizan located. After about 3 minutes walk, I arrived to the first building, the Palace of Alin Aq. Alin Aq was an amir and cupbearer to Sultan al-Ashraf Khalil ibn Qalawun. Originally built in 1293, which Khayr Bek restored as his residence is now under restoration. The design of this ruined structure is quite unique and it is directly linked to the Masjid Amir Khayr Bek by stairs through a amazingly layered arch. And, the only part that remains intact is the large round-arched entrance.

In the photo below, is the view of the Masjid of Amir Khayr Bek from the west side of the Palace of Alin Aq. You could also see the top structure of the Palace and some restoration work is still in slow progress.

It is said that Amir Khayr Bek betrayed his master Sultan al Ghuri and defected the Ottomans at the decisive battle near Aleppo or Halab, Syria in 1516, opening the door to conquest of Egypt. Hence, he was made the first viceroy of the Ottomans in Egypt. The shrine was built in 1502, while the masjid attached to it date from 1520, making the transition between the Mamluk and the Ottoman periods.

ESNCairo5::Masjid & Madrasah Umm Sultan Sha'aban

Our next stop was Madrasah and Masjid Umm Sultan Sha’ban, which was built in 1368 by Sultan Sha’ban for his mother, Khwand Baraka literally means Lady Blessing, while on making her pilgrimage to Makkah. It was originally built as a Madrasah or religious school to teach the two sects (ahlul sunnah wa Jamaah) of the four recognized sects, the Shafi’ie and the Hanafi.
The above photo was taken from the south side of tomb Ibrahim Khalifa Gindiyan, seconds after I arrived on the south-east side of the Madrasah. Well, actually I was a little bit tired, sweating and a little bit dehydrated. Hence, a brief stop under the shady ficus tree abundantly planted along the street.

The main feature of this fortress-like façade of the Madrasah cum Masjid is the grand entrance and the forty-five-degree turn of the rear part of the building. While exploring the surrounding, a kind old man (on the further left of the below photo) voluntarily guided me around with his sign language. With the local bread or aish on his hand, he asked me (of course with sign language) to shoot the Ayyubid Minaret that is partly hidden by an old building sand witched by the tomb of Ibrahim Khalifa Gindiyan and the house of Ibrahim Agha Mustahfizan.

Before I moved on, I captured the close up of the kind man for my collection – the faces of Egypt. He did not ask any tips or whatsoever from me, but as the courtesy and kind of gesture to say thank you him, I spared some EGP to him, which he immediately ran to the a small café across the Madrasah quenching his thirst with the local Egyptian tea.

ESNCairo6::House of Ahmad Katkhuda al Razzaz

On the left of the above photo is part of forty-five degree turn of the Madrasah cum Masjid Umm Sultan Sha’ban and the building on the right hand side or facing the east side of the Madrasah is the Sabil and house of Ibrahim Agha Mustahfizan that was built in 1639 and further restored and revitalized by Ibrahim Agha who was a protégé of Radwan Bey, in 1652. While straight to the north is part of the house of Ahmad Katkhuda al Razzaz that could be clearly identified by its mashrabiya.
The house was originally built in the fifteenth century by Sultan Qaytbay, however, converted and expanded by Ahmad Katkhuda al Razzaz in 1778 AD. Through my reading, the huge lofty house or palace, now sadly dilapidated within, contains 190 chambers for the members of large family, their servants and employees. There are many halls, courtyards, bathes, storerooms, and many splendid façade with the intricately crafted mashrabiyas.
Around the area one could find a rundown tomb of Ibrahim Khalifa Gindiyan (photo above) that was built in 1593. Unfortunately, at this phase of time though I could not gather much information or details about the owner of this tomb. There are also two small café located within the old buildings, selling hot tea, ahwa or coffee and tit-bits. Some of the shops were still not operating at this time, which is relatively too early for them. It was actually 10:02 am when the below photo was taken.

At this 6th stop, we had covered about two-third of the first phase of our adventure or one-quarter of the whole planned trip.

ESNCairo7::Zawiyat 'Arif Pasha

He lives a simple life – with his light brownish galabayya and clear white scarf briefly donned on his head, amid his toothless but sincere sweet smile, he reflected what life is all about. Steadfastly, sitting along the Bab al Wazir street selling one of the popular summer desert fruit – tin suqhi, the hot summer Cairo and the uncertainties of the economic situations around him did not affect his mental. One piece of locally baked bread or aish and a cup of Eyptian tea, .... bass in local dialect mean enough! Sufficient for him to persevere this tough life, yet he survives though.
Located right at the juncture of Bab al Wazir Street, al Tabanna Street and Souk al Silah, is the unpretentious Zawiyat ‘ Arif Pasha that was built in 1866. And, now still under restoration, though it seemed to be no progress?!Well, in the interest of time, I did not really stop here but rather passed it by while my D90 captured the ruined building.

ESNCairo8::Tomb of Abu al Yusufayn

30 meters north from the intersection of Bab al Wazir and al Tabanna Street across the Zawiyat ‘Arif Pasha is the tomb of Abu al Yusufayn built in 1329, another ruined monument hiding behind shady trees. Some part of its wall was used by some pathetic politician in promoting their own selfishness. Could you guys find some other appropriate place please!
Honestly, I don’t have any single clue of this I believe one of the prominent person during the Mamluks’ reign. I was wondering why these many historical significant monuments were ignored and not properly managed.

ESNCairo9::Masjid Atinbugha Maridani

Continue walking north, about 30 meters from the tomb of Abu al Yusufayn is one of the finest monuments of the fourteenth century, the Masjid of Altinbugha al Maridani, which was originally built inn 1340. Amir Altinbugha or literally means the ‘golden bull’ al Maridani was the son-in-law of Sultan al Nasir Muhammad. He was Sultan Nasir’s cupbearer and finally governor of Aleppo or Halab, where he died at the age of twenty five in the year 1341. Some claimed that he was murdered in an attempt to gain al Nasir’s throne.
While admiring the splendid meticulous work of the fourteenth century’s’ craftsmen, I was accompanied by three decent curious local kids who tried to catch my attention. “’aiz shuwara, ya ammu” one of them cried while the other giggled their behind me. “meshy” I replied while showing my passion towards them. I pointed my DSLR towards them but they bashfully walk away. I approached them and took few shot of their lovely humble face. Their presence had reminded me about my past life – the first part of life when my beloved mom was still with me. Life had never been ‘easy’ and it never will, for those who understand what life in this temporary world all about and for those who are near to Allah swt. Nevertheless, it should not be an excuse for us to live lethargically sluggish. I thanked them and moved on.

Above is the view of al Tabanna Street from the east side of the Masjid Altinbugha al Maridani, which was extensively restored by Le Comité in 1895 – 1903 but I think there is a need to have another round of restoration again. And, below is view of the north façade of the Masjid as I walked to the last cluster of the first phase of the adventure.